Open Letter To Imo State House Of Assembly...The Harassments Must Stop Now
HARASSMENT, INTIMIDATION AND VICTIMIZATION OF COMRADE KENNETH UWADI AND HIS FAMILY BY THE IMO STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY: A CALL FOR ASSISTANCE
The Youths Against Human Rights Violation And Corrupt Practices (YAHVCP) wish to inform you and the general public about the harassment, victimization and intimidation of our national coordinator Comrade Kenneth Uwadi and members of his family by police officers of Egbema police station.
Some of the police officers have alleged that the order to harass Uwadi came from the Imo House of Assembly Speaker. It is no secret that Uwadi has been a strong critic of the Imo State House of Assembly which has been run under the dark by Rt Hon Benjamin Uwajumogu.
He has been under the vigilance of the Imo House of Assembly on account of his doggedness in fighting corruption in the House , which the House dubbed as working for his pay-masters to distract them.
The first attempt to arrest Uwadi was the March 8th 2014 invasion of his residence in Egbema in Ohaji/Egbema LGA of Imo State Nigeria by armed uniformed police officers from the Egbema Police Station.
The invaders stormed his place in a crude military-like assault asking for him and ransacking his place but he was not at home. The second attempt was on the 28th of April 2014 . They came asking for him and attempted arresting his father Chief Vitus Uwadi who is a retired police officer. They also came again on the 30th of April 2014 and on the 2nd of May 2014 and harassed Chief Uwadi attempting to bundle him into their van but were resisted by youths of Mmahu. The Speaker's praise singers and aides are even boasting on the social media about how they will jail the blogger, columnist and human rights activist via a stage managed court.
YAHVCP see all these intimidation, harassment and victimization of Uwadi and his family as breaching the part of the Nigerian Constitution which allows all citizens open-power of expression and denying journalists, columnists ,bloggers and activists their freedom of expression on both Local, State and National government issues. We believe that Uwadi and Rt Hon Uwajumogu don't have any personal squabbles, but on governance transparency. We will not be intimidated.
A Legislative House as you know, is often referred to as a hallowed place - hallowed, not because GOD inhabits it; hallowed because it is expected to make laws for the common good of the generality of the people. And as an institution entrusted with such a sacred task, any of its operator – whether civil servant or politician – should be, as the Holy Scriptures say in Psalms 24 verse 4, “one who has clean hands and a pure heart and who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.”
But we were immensely shocked to read in the newspapers how the Speaker looted Imo State monies via road contract scam and used the money to acquire eye popping mansions all over. Citizen Ikenna Samuelson Iwuoha the man who blew the whistle on corruption in the Imo House of Assembly is also being ridiculed and victimized by the Speaker and his aides and ostracized by the Imo state government authorities. Funny enough, Iwuoha was a former media aide to the Speaker.
As a Youth group with one of its core objectives of assisting in solving societal problems, including the eradication of corruption, we quickly investigated the allegations and eventually found it to be true. We even took pictures of some of the buildings and the roads constructed by the Speaker's company. We also discovered that since the last thirty six months that Rt Hon Benjamin Uwajumogu was stamped into office as Speaker by a band of rough necks it is manifestly clear of a complete flight of good legislative laws in the Imo House of Assembly such that a bill was passed legalizing abortion in the state and what is in place in the house now is mindless looting of the Imo treasury via road contract scams.
Only one man in the State has stolen over N3billion naira Imo tax payers money and they want us to keep quite. One man has stolen over N3billion naira In a state where more than 80 percent of the population do not have access to potable/pipe-borne water supply, and where tertiary institutions in the state have no functional ICT facilities. N3 billion can at least lay some pipes for water supply for some areas in Imo State where potable pipe-borne water supply has been non-existent for years. The money can even procure farm inputs and equipments for Imo farmers.
YAHVCP is calling on the Imo House of Assembly members to impeach the Speaker Rt Hon Benjamin Uwajumogu immediately for corruption . Due to the plethora of scandals and long train of abuses of legislative powers and corruption surrounding him , he is now unfit to lead the House and should be removed. Right now 15,321(fifteen thousand three hundred and twenty one ) Imo citizens drawn from the 27 LGA of the state have signed our Impeach Imo Speaker's petition and we will send copies to the house via DHL.
We will not succumb to any manner of intimidation and victimization.The Speaker should go on with his Abacha like style of intolerance to the truth and his war against free speech and war against the press fully backed by his thieving cabals in the Imo State House of Assembly but we will continue to tell them to stop looting Imo State monies. Nigeria is practicing democracy, not dictatorship.
Anyone ordering for the arrest and trial of any Journalist, blogger or activists in Nigeria can't be described better than he or she is a dictator. Comrade Uwadi is not a terrorist, but a columnist, blogger and activist , clear headed and objective in the course of transparent writing. We know that history has never been merciful to any person or government whose stock-in-trade is dictatorship.
Interestingly while this Abacha style of hounding creeped into Imo, some politicians and leaders of Imo State rather than condemn and take a position against corruption are behaving as if it is none of their business, yes to them, it is a Kenneth Uwadi and a Samuelson Iwuoha's affair yet many of them are currently jostling to govern the State in 2015. They are afraid to speak against corruption in the state yet they want to rule the state.
YAHVCP is calling on the human rights community in Nigeria and abroad and Imo people in Nigeria and abroad to come to our aid as we fight this corruption in the Imo House of Assembly. We are also seeking legal backings from human rights lawyers as we head to the court to shame corruption in the Imo House of assembly. The above demand has become necessary in our quest to restore the dignity which the Imo House of Assembly has lost to corruption. Aluta Continua, Victoria Ascerta.
Signed
Kenneth Uwadi
YAHVCP National Coordinator
Amaka Didanda
YAHVCP Media Affairs Director
Comrade Weli Chinda
YAHVCP South South Coordinator
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